Extreme Capacity Management in an Electronic Marketplace Environment

ABSTRACT

A system ( 10 ) for managing a capacity extreme at a first entity ( 12 ) in a supply chain includes a planning application ( 36 ) that receives status data for at least the first entity ( 12 ) reflecting the capacity extreme at the first entity ( 12 ) and generates a plan ( 34 ) according to the status data. A manager application ( 44 ) receives the plan ( 34 ) and, according to the plan ( 34 ), automatically initiates at least one service in an attempt to resolve at least a portion of the capacity extreme through interaction with one or more other entities ( 12 ). The manager application ( 44 ) selects the service from among a plurality of available services based on a monetary value to the first entity ( 12 ) of a resolution expected to be available using the selected service relative to other services.

1. CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This is a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/841,320, filed on 23 Apr. 2001 and entitled “EXTREME CAPACITYMANAGEMENT IN AN ELECTRONIC MARKETPLACE ENVIRONMENT”, which claims thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/238,307 filed Oct.5, 2000 entitled “ELECTRONIC MARKETPLACE PROVIDING EXTREME CAPACITYMANAGEMENT”. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/841,320 and U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/238,307 are commonly assigned to theassignee of the present application. The disclosure of related patentapplication Ser. No. 09/841,320 and U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/238,307 are hereby incorporated by reference into the presentdisclosure as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND

2. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to commercial transactions, and moreparticularly to extreme capacity management in an electronic marketplaceenvironment.

3. Description of Related Art

Companies often experience cycles in which the companies have eitherexcess capacity or under capacity over an extended period. As anexample, a manufacturing company may manufacture more products than ithas orders for, resulting in an excess capacity situation.Alternatively, a manufacturing company may manufacture too few productsto meet its orders, resulting in an under capacity situation. Similarundesirable capacity mismatches may occur with respect to wholesalers,retailers, and other types of companies that must endeavor to matchtheir capacity with demand. Relatively short term excess or undercapacity may often be addressed using a factory planner or otherplanning engine to bring capacity in line with the demand within one ortwo planning periods. For example, a factory planner may cause adecrease in production in one or more subsequent periods to offsetexcess capacity in a current period, such that by the end of one or twoperiods the excess capacity has been eliminated. Alternatively, undercapacity in a current period may be addressed through increasedproduction for one or two subsequent periods. Once capacity returns tothe desired level, the manufacturing of products may continue as before.

Such techniques often have a number of inadequacies. First, taking afactory as an example, decreasing or increasing production to addresscapacity issues may require operating the factory under less thanoptimal conditions. The likely result is increased overhead or otherindirect allocation of resources, which negatively impacts the bottomline. Second, although a planning engine may be able to providenotification when the capacity is far above or below what is necessaryto match demand, the planning engine will be unable in general toprovide a solution for resolving the capacity extreme. The company isleft to find an acceptable solution on its own. Doing so typicallyrequires experienced personnel to devote valuable time in finding othercompanies to accept the excess capacity or provide the under capacity.Even experienced personnel may not be aware of all potential buyers orsuppliers or, more importantly, the buyers and suppliers that havecompatible capacity at the particular time. These and other deficiencieshave made previous techniques for addressing capacity extremesinadequate for the needs of many companies.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, problems and disadvantagesassociated with prior techniques for addressing extremes in capacityhave been substantially reduced or eliminated.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a system formanaging a capacity extreme at a first entity in a supply chain includesa planning application that receives status data for at least the firstentity reflecting the capacity extreme at the first entity and generatesa plan according to the status data. A manager application receives theplan and, according to the plan, automatically initiates at least oneservice in an attempt to resolve at least a portion of the capacityextreme through interaction with one or more other entities. The managerapplication selects the service from among a plurality of availableservices based on a monetary value to the first entity of a resolutionexpected to be available using the selected service relative to otherservices.

In a more particular embodiment, in response to initiating the servicethe manager application performs an action to resolve at least a portionof the capacity extreme. The action may include selling items to anotherentity according to a previously existing contract between the firstentity and the other entity, purchasing items from another entityaccording to a previously existing contract between the first entity andthe other entity, selling items to another entity in an auction,purchasing items from another entity in a reverse auction, posting itemsin a catalog of the first entity for sale to another entity, purchasingitems posted in a catalog of another entity, posting items in aninventory listing service for sale to another entity, or purchasingitems posted in an inventory listing service by another entity.

In another embodiment of the invention, an electronic marketplace formanaging excess or under capacity at one or more enterprises in a supplychain includes a planning application that receives status data formultiple enterprises in the supply chain, the status data reflectingexcess or under capacity at a first enterprise in the supply chain. Theplanning application generates a plan according to the status data forthe enterprises and according to a model incorporating the enterprises.A manager application receives the plan and, according to the plan,automatically initiates at least one service in an attempt to resolve atleast a portion of the excess or under capacity through interaction withone or more other enterprises. The manager application may select theservice from among multiple available services based on a monetary valueto the first enterprise of a resolution that is expected to be availableusing the selected service. The manager application then manages atransfer of items from or to the first enterprise from one or more otherenterprises to resolve the excess or under capacity, respectively.

The present invention provides a number of technical advantages overprevious techniques. The present invention provides an electronicmarketplace solution to allow multiple suppliers and buyers tocollaboratively resolve capacity extremes that cannot typically behandled using conventional planned procurement techniques. The presentinvention helps to optimize supplier operations by providingsubstantially instantaneous visibility into demand and supply at othermembers of the value chain and propagating demand and supply throughoutthe value chain to enable suppliers to offload or procure itemssufficient to resolve excesses and deficits in capacity. The presentinvention may reduce administrative lead times and allow suppliers suchas manufacturers to operate at maximum plant capacity and thus withmaximum efficiency and minimum overhead. If capacity extremes areencountered, such manufacturers can compensate rapidly using theintelligent resources of the marketplace. The present invention providesthe marketplace with visibility into real constraints and details neededto understand the issues, evaluate alternatives, and facilitate theresolution of capacity extremes.

Systems and methods incorporating one or more of these or otheradvantages are well suited for modern commercial transactionenvironments such as those associated with business-to-business (“B2B”)electronic marketplaces. Other technical advantages are readily apparentto those skilled in the art from the following figures, descriptions,and claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features believed characteristic of the invention are setforth in the appended claims. However, the invention itself, as well asa preferred mode of use, and further objectives and advantages thereof,will best be understood by reference to the following detaileddescription when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system for managing capacity extremes inan electronic marketplace environment;

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary electronic marketplace;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary method of setting up a system formanaging capacity extremes in an electronic marketplace environment; and

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary method of resolving a capacity extremeat a supplier.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made to the following detailed description of thepreferred and alternate embodiments of the present invention. Thoseskilled in the art will recognize that the present invention providesmany inventive concepts and novel features, that are merelyillustrative, and are not to be construed as restrictive. Accordingly,the specific embodiments discussed herein are given by way of exampleand do not limit the scope of the present invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system 10 for managing capacity extremesassociated with one or more suppliers 12 of products or other items.Each supplier 12 may be coupled to a business-to-business (B2B),business-to-consumer (B2C), or other electronic marketplace 14 thatlinks supplier 12 to one or more other suppliers 12 or to buyers 16. Asshown, a supplier 12 a may be coupled to one or more first tiersuppliers 12 b which are in turn coupled to one or more second tiersuppliers 12 c. Depending on the nature of marketplace 14, suppliers 12may include manufacturers such as original equipment manufacturers(OEMs), component manufacturers or suppliers, distributors, wholesalers,retailers, or any other entities that supply items to other suppliers 12or to buyers 16 and that may experience excess or under capacity fromtime to time. The present invention contemplates multiple suppliers 12that are associated with the same enterprise, for example, multiplefactories, assembly lines, or other entities associated with the samemanufacturing enterprise. In general, marketplace 14 brokers pertinentdata among the suppliers 12 to propagate demand and supply in order tonet capacity across the value chain that incorporates suppliers 12.Although extremes of excess or under capacity are primarily described,the present invention encompasses management of any degree of excess orunder capacity according to particular needs.

In general, marketplace 14 receives an indication from supplier 12 thatsupplier 12 is or might soon experience a capacity extreme, determines asuitable resolution for the capacity extreme, and facilitates a transferof items sufficient to wholly or partially resolve the capacity extreme.For under capacity, the marketplace 14 identifies one or more suppliers12 from which the needed items may be purchased and facilitates thetransfer of the items to supplier 12. For excess capacity, themarketplace 14 identifies one or more other suppliers 12 or buyers 16 towhich the excess items may be sold and facilitates transfer of the itemsto the other supplier 12 or buyer 16. As a result of this activity,capacity extremes may be efficiently and effectively managed without atleast some of the deficiencies associated with prior techniques.Features and operation of marketplace 14 are described more fully below.While suppliers 12 and buyers 16 are shown as being coupled tomarketplace 14, the present invention contemplates suppliers 12interacting with one another through one or more first marketplaces 14and suppliers 12 interacting with buyers 16 using one or more secondmarketplaces 14. For example, first marketplace 14 may be a purely B2Bmarketplace 14 and second marketplace 14 may be a purely B2C marketplace14.

Suppliers 12 and buyers 16 may interact with marketplace 14 autonomouslyor according to input from one or more associated persons. Suppliers 12,marketplace 14, and buyers 16 may be coupled to one another using one ormore local area networks (LANs), metropolitan area networks (MANS), widearea networks (WANs), a portion of the global computer network known asthe Internet, or any other appropriate wireline, wireless, or otherlinks. Suppliers 12, marketplace 14, and buyers 16 may be arranged andcommunicate with one another according to a hub-and-spoke, peer-to-peer,or any other suitable architecture. In one embodiment, system 10 isimplemented with a hub-and-spoke architecture in which the spokes aresuitably integrated with the enterprise systems of suppliers 12 andbuyers 16 and allow schedule-based data transfer between theseenterprise systems and marketplace 14. Suppliers 12, marketplace 14, andbuyers 16 may each operate on one or more computer systems at one ormore locations. The components of system 10 may share data storage,communications, or other resources according to particular needs.

FIG. 2 illustrates exemplary marketplace 14, and interactions withsuppliers 12 and buyers 16, in more detail. Marketplace 14 may includeone or more firewalls 20 establishing a “DMZ” or other region 22 thatseparates suppliers 12 and buyers 16 from certain processing and datastorage resources of marketplace 14. In one embodiment, DMZ 22 isolatesa file transfer protocol (FTP) or other appropriate file server 24 thatreceives data files 26 or other information from enterprise systems 28associated with suppliers 12 and buyers 16. File server 24 communicatesthe data files 26 to a database tier 30 of marketplace 14 for storage indatabase 32 in the form of flatfiles or otherwise. File server 24 alsoreceives planning output 34 from one or more appropriate plannerapplications 36 within an application tier 38 of the marketplace 14. Thefile server 24 communicates the planning output 34 to enterprise systems28 associated with suppliers 12. DMZ 22 also isolates one or more webservers 40 within a web tier 42 of the marketplace 14 that communicatebetween a manager application 44 within application tier 38 and one ormore users 46 associated with the suppliers 12 and buyers 16. Forexample, the web server 40 may communicate with users 46 usingExtensible Markup Language (XML) documents contained within SecureHypertext Transfer Protocol (SHTTP) requests.

In one embodiment, the manager application 44 is responsible formanaging the flow of data to, from, and within the marketplace 14 inconnection with management of extremes in capacity on behalf ofsuppliers 12. Based on the planning information it receives from theplanner application 36, reflecting at least the capacity situation atthe supplier 12 and preferably also the capacity situations at one ormore other suppliers 12 and buyers 16, manager application 44 mayinitiate one or more appropriate services in an attempt to resolve thecapacity extreme. In a more particular embodiment, planner application36 is a supply chain planning engine which generates planninginformation for some or all of the value chain that contains thesupplier 12, other suppliers 12, and buyers 16 based on data files 26received from enterprise systems 28. In still another more particularembodiment, planner application 36 is a factory planning engine thatgenerates planning information for at least a portion of a factory andits constituent operations. Planner application 36 may interact withdatabase 32 or, more preferably with respect to certain tasks, with anactive data warehouse (ADW) 50 in which the information contained in thedata files 26 is may be stored and updated. The manager application 44might also have access to ADW 50 where appropriate. In addition, asdescribed more fully below, manager application 44 may accessinformation stored in database 48 in connection with one or moreservices it may initiate to resolve capacity extremes. While database32, database 48, and ADW 50 are described as separate, the presentinvention contemplates these storage locations being integral to oneanother, in whole or in part, according to particular needs.

As described above, manager application 44 may initiate one or moresuitable services in response to planning information from plannerapplication 36 indicating an extreme capacity situation at supplier 12.Services available to manager application 44 may be identified indatabase 48, which manager application 44 accesses to determine which ofthe services to initiate, in which order to initiate the services, andinformation pertaining to the services. In one embodiment, for undercapacity at the supplier 12, manager application 44 may perform one ormore of the following, in any appropriate combination and withoutlimitation: (1) purchase some or all needed items from one or more othersuppliers 12 according to any existing contracts between the supplier 12and the other suppliers 12; (2) initiate one or more reverse auctions topurchase some or all needed items from one or more other suppliers 12;(3) purchase some or all needed items from one or more other suppliers12 according to associated catalogs of these suppliers 12, typically atlist price; and (4) purchase some or all needed items from one or moreother suppliers 12 according to an inventory listing service (ILS),typically at a discount price.

In one embodiment, for excess capacity at supplier 12, managerapplication 44 may perform one or more of the following, in anycombination and without limitation: (1) sell some or all of the excessitems to one or more other suppliers 12 or buyers 16 according to anyexisting contracts between supplier 12 and the other suppliers 12 orbuyers 16; (2) initiate one or more forward auctions to sell some or allexcess items to one or more other suppliers 12 or buyers 16; (3) sellsome or all excess items to one or more other suppliers 12 or buyers 16according to the catalog of supplier 12, typically at list price; and(4) sell some or all of the excess items to one or more other suppliers12 or buyers 16 through an ILS, typically at a discount price. Managerapplication 44 preferably selects from among all available options toidentify one or more options that together satisfy the demand (orrelieve the supply) of supplier 12 for the lowest total cost (or highestoverall revenue), subject to applicable schedule, delivery, and otherconstraints. After selecting one or more options, manager application 44preferably manages, in whole or in part, the associated transactionsthat are necessary to actually resolve the capacity extreme that existsat supplier 12. The manager application 44 may resolve the capacityextreme substantially automatically in reliance on input from theenterprise systems 28. Manager application 44 may interact withintelligent buying or selling agents associated with the parties to atransaction in resolving the transaction. Manager application 44 may useappropriate input from any users 46 associated with the supplier 12,other suppliers 12, or buyers 16. The present invention contemplatesresolving the capacity extreme at supplier 12 in any suitable manner inresponse to identification of one or more appropriate options atmarketplace 14, according to particular needs.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary method of setting up system 10 to managecapacity extremes at one or more suppliers 12. The method begins at step100, where supplier 12 specifies set-up information for items for whichcapacity extremes may be managed. As an example, where supplier 12 a isan OEM, this set-up information may provide: items for which capacityextremes at supplier 12 a are to be managed; any other suppliers 12 athat are known to supply or procure the items; any first tier suppliers12 b known to supply the items to supplier 12 a; any buyers 16 known toprocure the items; information relating to any contracts that mightexist between supplier 12 a and other suppliers 12 a, first tiersuppliers 12 b, or buyers 16; any other suitable sourcing data;communications information to allow the enterprise systems 28 of thesupplier 12 a to communicate data files 26 and planning output 34 withmarketplace 14; one or more capacity trees; one or more bills ofmaterials (BOMs); suitable mappings between the items supplied to orprocured from supplier 12 a and items supplied by or procured by,respectively, other entities; and any other suitable set-up information.

For first tier supplier 12 b, the set-up information may provide: itemsfor which capacity extremes at supplier 12 b are to be managed; anyother suppliers 12 b known to supply or procure the items; any secondtier suppliers 12 c known to supply the items to supplier 12 b; anysuppliers 12 a known to procure the items; information concerning anycontracts that may exist between the supplier 12 b and other suppliers12 b, second tier suppliers 12 c or suppliers 12 a; any other sourcingdata; communications information to allow enterprise systems 28 ofsupplier 12 b to communicate data files 26 and planning output 34 withthe marketplace 14; one or more capacity trees; one or more BOMs;mappings between the items supplied to or procured from supplier 12 band the items supplied or procured by, respectively, other entities; andany other appropriate set-up information.

Similarly, for a second tier supplier 12 c, set-up information mayprovide: items for which capacity extremes at supplier 12 c are to bemanaged; any other suppliers 12 c known to supply or procure the items;any third tier suppliers 12 d known to supply the items to supplier 12c; any suppliers 12 b being known to procure the items; informationconcerning any contracts that may exist between supplier 12 c and othersuppliers 12 c, third tier suppliers 12 d or second tier suppliers 12 b;other appropriate sourcing data; communications information to allow theenterprise systems 28 of the supplier 12 c to communicate data files 26and planning output 34 with marketplace 14; one or more capacity trees;one or more BOMs; mappings between the items supplied to or procuredfrom the supplier 12 c and those items supplied by or procured by,respectively, other entities; and any other appropriate set-upinformation. Analogous set-up information may be specified for third andlower tiered suppliers 12 or for any other entity within system 10 thatis coupled to marketplace 14.

At step 102, the set-up information for supplier 12 is placed in aspecified data storage location associated with supplier 12, such asbehind a firewall that secures this information against unauthorizedaccess. In a particular embodiment, at step 104, the spoke associatedwith supplier 12 picks up the set-up information and communicates itover the Internet or otherwise for storage in database 32 and preferablyADW 50. A user 46 may assist in communicating set-up information tomarketplace 14, particularly the first time set-up information iscommunicated for the particular supplier 12. Thereafter, updated set-upinformation may be automatically communicated by the spoke from thesupplier 12 to marketplace 14 on a scheduled basis.

At step 106, ADW 50 may validate one or more suitable aspects of theset-up information. If errors exist at step 108, an error log isgenerated and communicated to supplier 12 at step 110. In oneembodiment, the error log is placed in a specified data storage locationassociated with supplier 12, such as behind a firewall that secures thisinformation against unauthorized access. At step 112, supplier 12 or anassociated user 46 accesses the error log, makes appropriatecorrections, and regenerates some or all of the set-up information forthe supplier 12. The method then returns to step 102. If no errors existat step 108, then set-up is complete for supplier 12 at step 114.

If updates to the set-up information are warranted at step 116, supplier12 or an associated user 46 specifies the updates at step 118 and themethod then returns to step 102. The present invention contemplatesupdating set-up information for a supplier 12 periodically, according toan appropriate schedule, as long as supplier 12 is associated with themarketplace 14. If the supplier 12 disassociates from the marketplace 14such that no updates occur at step 116, the method ends. The presentinvention contemplates the method being performed analogously for eachsupplier 12 or other entity that uses marketplace 14 for managing itscapacity extremes or that otherwise participates in the management ofcapacity extremes at other suppliers 12 or entities.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary method of resolving a capacity extremeat supplier 12 or other entity using the resources of marketplace 14.The method begins at step 200, where supplier 12 and hierarchicallyrelated suppliers 12 update their supply, demand, capacity, inventory,or other suitable status data using associated enterprise systems 28. Asan example, where supplier 12 is an OEM, supplier 12 may update itsdemand and inventory status data to reflect excess or under capacity atsupplier 12. One or more associated first tier, second tier, and lowertier suppliers 12 may similarly update their supply, capacity, andinventory status data. These updates may occur on a scheduled basis,serially, substantially simultaneously, or in any other appropriatemanner. In one embodiment, all suppliers 12 update associated statusdata according to a predetermined schedule designed to help ensure thatthe marketplace 14 is not operating on stale data while not imposing anunduly large burden on enterprise systems 28, users 46, or any otheraspects of suppliers 12.

At step 202, the status data for each supplier 12 is placed in aspecified data storage location associated with supplier 12, such asbehind a firewall that protects the information against unauthorizedaccess. In one embodiment, at step 204, the spokes associated with thesesuppliers 12 pick up the status data and communicate it over theInternet or otherwise to ADW 50 of marketplace 14. Although scheduledautomatic communication of the status data is preferable, user 46 mayassist in communicating the status data to marketplace 14 asappropriate. At step 206, ADW 50 may validate one or more appropriateaspects of the status data. If errors exist at step 208, an error log isgenerated and communicated to supplier 12 at step 210. In oneembodiment, the error log is placed in a specified data storage locationassociated with supplier 12, such as behind a firewall that secures theinformation from unauthorized access. At step 212, supplier 12 or anassociated user 46 accesses the error log, makes suitable corrections,and regenerates some or all set-up information for the supplier 12. Themethod then returns to step 102. If no errors exist at step 208, thenupdating of the status data is complete for supplier 12 at step 214.

At step 216, ADW 50 communicates the status data for one or moresuppliers 12 to planner application 36 and, possibly, to managerapplication 44. Based on the status data and an appropriate model for atleast the portion of the value chain containing the supplier 12,planning application 36 generates an updated plan at step 218. Althoughsupplier 12 and its associated value chain are primarily described, asnoted above the present invention contemplates planning for any suitablecollection of entities, such as multiple factories of a singleenterprise or multiple operations within a single factory. Planningapplication 44 then communicates the plan to manager application 44 andto enterprise systems 28 of supplier 12 at step 220.

In response, at step 222, manager application 44 initiates one or moresuitable services in an effort to resolve the capacity extreme atsupplier 12. As described more fully above, depending on the nature ofthe capacity extreme, manager application 44 may rely on existingcontracts between the supplier 12 and other entities, initiate one ormore reverse or regular auctions, use catalogs, use an ILS, or initiateany other suitable service according to particular needs. At step 224,the manager application 44 interacts with supplier 12, its enterprisesystems 28, or its associated users 46 as appropriate to resolve theextreme in capacity. Manager application 44 may similarly interact withone or more other suppliers 12 or other entities involved in resolvingthe capacity extreme, depending on the selected service and thecapabilities of the marketplace 14. Once the capacity extreme has beenadequately resolved, the method ends.

Although the present invention has been described with severalembodiments, a plethora of changes, substitutions, variations,alterations, and modifications may be suggested to one skilled in theart, and it is intended that the invention encompass all such changes,substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications as fall withinthe spirit and scope of the appended claims.

1. An electronic marketplace for managing excess or under capacity atone or more enterprises in a supply chain, comprising: a planningapplication operable to receive status data for a plurality ofenterprises in the supply chain, the status data reflecting excess orunder capacity at a first enterprise in the supply chain, the planningapplication operable to generate a plan according to the status data forthe plurality of enterprises in the supply chain and further accordingto a model incorporating the plurality of enterprises in the supplychain; and a manager application operable to receive the plan and,according to the plan, to automatically initiate at least one service inan attempt to resolve at least a portion of the excess or under capacitythrough interaction with one or more other enterprises, the managerapplication operable to select the service from among a plurality ofavailable services based on a monetary value to the first enterprise ofa resolution expected to be available using the selected service, themanager application further operable to manage transfer of items from orto the first enterprise from one or more other enterprises to resolvethe excess or under capacity, respectively.
 2. The marketplace of claim1, wherein the status data comprises data selected from the groupconsisting of: demand data; supply data; inventory data; and capacitydata.
 3. The marketplace of claim 1, wherein the manager application isoperable to, in response to initiating the service, perform an action toresolve at least a portion of the excess or under capacity, the actionselected from the group consisting of: sell items to another entityaccording to a previously existing contract between the first entity andthe other entity; purchase items from another entity according to apreviously existing contract between the first entity and the otherentity; sell items to another entity in an auction; purchase items fromanother entity in a reverse auction; post items in a catalog of thefirst entity for sale to another entity; purchase items posted in acatalog of another entity; post items in an inventory listing servicefor sale to another entity; and purchase items posted in an inventorylisting service by another entity.
 4. The marketplace of claim 1,wherein the manager application is operable to initiate multipleservices to attempt to resolve the excess or under capacity, a firstservice being initiated to attempt to resolve a first portion of theexcess or under capacity and a second service being initiated to attemptto resolve a second portion of the excess or under capacity.
 5. A methodof managing a capacity extreme at a first entity in a supply chain,comprising: receiving status data for at least the first entityreflecting the capacity extreme at the first entity; automaticallygenerating a plan according to the status data; and according to theplan, automatically initiating at least one service in an attempt toresolve at least a portion of the capacity extreme through interactionwith one or more other entities, the service being selected from among aplurality of available services based on a monetary value to the firstentity of a resolution expected to be available using the selectedservice relative to other services.
 6. The method of claim 5, whereinthe first entity is a first enterprise and the plan is a supply chainplan for at least a portion of the supply chain containing the firstenterprise.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein the status data comprisesdata selected from the group consisting of: demand data; supply data;inventory data; and capacity data.
 8. The method of claim 5, wherein thecapacity extreme is selected from the group consisting of excesscapacity and under capacity.
 9. The method of claim 5, furthercomprising receiving status data from one or more other entities in thesupply chain, the plan being generated according to all of the statusdata for the supply chain.
 10. The method of claim 5, wherein the planis generated further according to a model incorporating at least thefirst entity.
 11. The method of claim 5, further comprising, in responseto initiating the service, performing an action to resolve at least aportion of the capacity extreme, the action selected from the groupconsisting of: sell items to another entity according to a previouslyexisting contract between the first entity and the other entity;purchase items from another entity according to a previously existingcontract between the first entity and the other entity; sell items toanother entity in an auction; purchase items from another entity in areverse auction; post items in a catalog of the first entity for sale toanother entity; purchase items posted in a catalog of another entity;post items in an inventory listing service for sale to another entity;and purchase items posted in an inventory listing service by anotherentity.
 12. The method of claim 5, further comprising initiatingmultiple services to attempt to resolve the capacity extreme, a firstservice being initiated in an attempt to resolve a first portion of thecapacity extreme and a second service being initiated in an attempt toresolve a second portion of the capacity extreme.
 13. The method ofclaim 5, further comprising interacting with the other entitiesautomatically to resolve the capacity extreme according to the plan. 14.A computer-readable medium having encoded theron software for managing acapacity extreme at a first entity in a supply chain, the softwarecomprising instructions for: receiving status data for at least thefirst entity reflecting the capacity extreme at the first entity;automatically generating a plan according to the status data; andaccording to the plan, automatically initiating at least one service inan attempt to resolve at least a portion of the capacity extreme throughinteraction with one or more other entities, the service being selectedfrom among a plurality of available services based on a monetary valueto the first entity of a resolution expected to be available using theselected service relative to other services.